There’s an important category of friends that everyone should have.
And that category is: friend you can take to a party and not worry about.
Even if they know no one but you, said-friend will have a great time.
An amazing time, even!
They’ll introduce themselves to other guests. Chat up the host’s neighbor’s aunt who’s in town from Minnesota and doesn’t hear so well. Maybe they’ll start a party game. Or a conga line.
Nick Gray falls squarely in this category.
As the founder of Museum Hack, a tour company-turned-team building juggernaut, and author of The 2-Hour Cocktail Party, Gray has turned being social into a career.
He’s also a styling client (he worked with Kelci!) and has been on a journey this past year updating and upgrading his style.
Below, check out a week in the Austin, Texas-based entrepreneur and writer’s wardrobe.
Monday
Why I Wore It: I was at the mall in Austin with one of my friends. I love this color blue and I like how it plays off of my shoes even though I didn’t intend that.
A lot of my wardrobe is blue and I have been slowly transitioning to wearing more greens. That’s what I’m getting at by trying on this green hat.
This one’s J.Crew, but I have another one that my stylist from Style Girlfriend sourced for me from Urban Outfitters that I really like.
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Monday
Why I Wore It: I wore this outfit to a startup and technology company Christmas cocktail party.
I haven’t worn a bow tie in many years. I used to wear them all the time when I was leading my renegade museum tours at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
But I got some fashion feedback that they weren’t helping me towards my goals.
They look a little bit childish on me, especially because I buy the ones that are pre-tied. I made an exception for this event because I wanted something that would go with the green jacket and I needed something fast!
I think it was fun for one night, but I wouldn’t wear the bow tie much more.
The idea with the jeans was to keep it sort of casual but dressy on top. The jeans I’m shocked I still fit into as I bought them about thirteen years ago in New York City.
This party was a lot of fun, by the way. I’m pointing here at just a random piece of art that was displayed in this huge mansion where the party was.
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Wednesday
Why I Wore It: This was just a normal everyday outfit for me to run errands.
Now that I’m looking at it, my yellow watch band really clashes with my neon yellow hat.
I’m starting to wear a lot more neon yellow, so I probably need to go back to a black watch band or match the neon exactly.
This was an easy outfit for me to just throw something on as I was running out the door. Nothing special, but that’s a real slice of life.
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Thursday
Why I Wore It: First, I want to note that the neon safety vest is for my bike ride home. I didn’t wear it to the party.
Right before this picture, I was at a cocktail party that my friend Courtney had organized. Courtney is my star student from my book, The 2-Hour Cocktail Party, here in Austin. She read my book and even shadowed me, and now is hosting lots of social events and mixers.
This one was at her friend Ben’s, in a beautiful apartment with a penthouse view.
I wore something that was fun but also very New York with the black jacket, sweater, and the black jeans.
Honestly, I really like the neon yellow color pop from my bike safety vest.
Maybe I should wear this more often?
Maybe not.
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Friday
Why I Wore It: I had to include this outfit because this photo sort of went viral when I posted it online.
While my outfit is cool, what people really liked (I’m guessing) was seeing this Christmas tree made out of books that this man had created.
What is most impressive is that there’s no single anchor. He’s only using the gravity and weights of the books to keep it from all falling down.
We all knew that the books could collapse at any moment. Thankfully, they never did!
This was a fun outfit and I really love the green shirt. One more plug for Style Girlfriend as my stylist recommended it for me.
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Want more real guy style?
Check out a week in the wardrobe of a stay-at-home San Francisco dad, an underwear entrepreneur, and a tech exec.
